


A Frame of Mind

by palecrimsongoddess



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Derek Hale, Alpha Laura Hale, Alpha Peter Hale, Alternate Universe - Werewolf Apocalypse, Alternate Universe - Werewolves Are Known, BAMF Stiles, F/M, Hunter Stiles Stilinski, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-01-14
Updated: 2014-01-28
Packaged: 2018-01-08 17:05:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1135229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/palecrimsongoddess/pseuds/palecrimsongoddess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Scott is bitten on a routine patrol for the rogue terrorizing the encampment, he and Stiles narrowly escape re capture.  Will they die alone in the unknown lands outside of the territory?  Or will they receive help from an unlikely ally?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meeting Stiles

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MissThief](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissThief/gifts).



> This has been beta'd by my lovely roommate MissThief. Enjoy.
> 
>  
> 
> "Apocalypse is a frame of mind. A Belief. A surrender to inevitability. It is a despair for the future. It is the death of hope."
> 
> -Nicodemus, Dresden Files

_“A body was found in the woods, savagely torn apart. We have reason to believe this is the work of the rogue spotted at the edge of the encampment last week.” The sheriff looked to his recruits, all of them young, barely seventeen at most. His own son was among the group; he could tell Stiles was nervous from the way his foot kept bouncing, although he knew the stubborn boy would never admit it. He shook his head. As much as he wished he could worry about his son’s safety, since the uprising he didn’t have that luxury. None of them did. Hardening his gaze he turned back to the recruits._

_“Your mission is simple. Find a trail leading to the rogue. Do not try to play hero and find the rogue after you get the trail. You will die. Plain and simple, the beast is stronger, faster, and heals better than you.” Pacing back and forth he continued, “If the rogue finds you, do not try to take it down. Distract it and run. Radio myself or Deputy Argent, and get the hell out of there. Remember, the mission objective for you guys is recon. The senior officers will take care of putting the thing down.” He looked pointedly at Scott and Stiles for that one, while the former looked down sheepishly, the latter was unrepentant. Rolling his eyes, he looked at the whole room. “If there are no questions, we meet at the compound gates for 8 p.m. sharp. Dismissed!”_

When Stiles woke up this morning and heard his dad’s new recruit speech, he never imagined it would end like this. He and Scott kept running through the preserve in the opposite direction of the compound. At this point they had to be nearing the territory line. A sharp spike of fear went through his veins at the thought. The fact of the matter was that no one knew what was beyond the territory line. He almost tripped, and cursed colorfully as Scott bodily hauled him along until he got his footing. 

“Damnit, Stiles! Focus, once we pass the territory line they can’t follow us. We’ll be safe…”

Stiles snorted at Scott’s statement. Safe. Hadn’t he realized that nowhere was safe yet? Not inside the compound, and certainly not outside of it. Since the uprising of the wolves, when the feral beasts destroyed civilization, the only thing anyone could be certain of was that no one was safe. Everyone knew that wolves were devoid of humanity, they killed without prejudice, and their bloodlust flowed and ebbed with the lunar cycle, reaching it’s peak at the full moon. If one was ever in combat with a wolf, the objective above all else, was not to get bitten. While the bite was not fully understood, all humans knew two things about it: It either turned you, or it killed you. In the compound everyone was led to believe that being turned was as good as being dead. After all, anyone turned into a wolf went feral, crazed to the point of losing speech. Stiles had believed it, just like everyone else. Drank the kool-aid if you will. Then Scott was bitten, and everything went sideways.

“Really, Scott? Safe? From who? If we escape the Argents, then what? The other wolves aren’t like you Scotty, they’ll kill us dead, and thats only if the Argents don’t do it first.”

Scott looked like he wanted to argue, but realized the futility and backed down.

_“Ya excited Scotty?” Stiles asked throwing his arm around Scott. While keeping his arm around Scott’s shoulders he spread his arms, “Just think, if we’re the ones to find the rogue, it will put us that much more ahead of our recruit class! We’ll be shoe-ins for future raids! No more sitting on the sidelines, we’ll actually get to see the outside,” As Stiles said the last part he was practically vibrating with energy. Looking a little wary, Scott shifted from foot to foot._

_“I don’t know Stiles, didn’t your dad say we were just supposed to find a trail? I don’t know if I want to take on a wolf… Might be a little out of our league, don’t you think?” Stiles rolled his eyes, scoffing, “Well it is with an attitude like that! Come on, Scott! I’m not saying that we try to go toe to toe with the mutt, just that if we can actually find the damn thing--Not a trail, but the actual wolf. That would make us look leagues ahead of the other recruits!” Scott rolled his eyes, and turned to face Stiles “Whatever, look I’m gonna go hang out with Allison before we go, tonight”_

_“Yeah, yeah. Go get your ‘could be our last time’ nookie. When you’re done with that, wanna come over? My dad found an Xbox on the last raid; Some games too. Could be fun?”_

_Scott’s puppy face perked up at that, and he smiled. “Sure thing bro! I’ll stop by in a couple hours,” Shifting from foot to foot, he started, “Do you think-”_

_“Yes, Scott. The lovely Allison can come as well,” Stiles should have known better than to expect solid bro time._

_“Thanks, man. I’ll see if she can bring Lydia with her.” Stiles cracked a smile at that, and nodded. While he didn’t carry a torch for her like he used to, she was a close friend that Stiles didn’t get to see as much as he would like to._

“I-I gotta stop,” Stiles leaned against a tree putting his hands on his knees breathing heavily from the exertion of running practically non-stop since they left the compound. Blowing out a huge breath, Stiles noticed that Scott suddenly cocked his head to the side. Mouth breathing with his hands on his hips as he stood up, Stiles asked, “What now?” 

Eyes flashing yellow, Scott turned to him, “We need to run.” 

“Well in case you haven’t noticed Scotty, I’m not in the best sh-” He was cut off by Scott bodily hauling him forward, furiously whispering “Now!” Shaking his head, Stiles put the pain of running for what must have been a couple hours out of his head, and took off with Scott. “Can I assume by how we are currently still running that what you heard was no good?” 

Scott shook his head affirmative. “Real bad. Other wolves, at least three by the sounds of it.” 

Stiles got his crossbow off his back and readied it while running; standard procedure. “Well then Scotty boy, we’ll just have to level the playing field.”

Grinning, Stiles climbed one of the trees near by to get a better vantage point, while Scott circled around, masking Stiles’ scent with his own and waited. This was the part that he always detested the most, the waiting, but he kept his crossbow aimed at the clearing. They weren’t sure what they expected, but the three wolves that appeared were not it. They were filthy, mud and blood caked on their clothes, wild hair with vegetation poking from it or maybe growing there? The grins on their faces were manic before one took into account the fangs peaking out from their mouths, and electric blue eyes. The claw tipped hands were covered in blood, a sure sign that they were not against killing. Steadying his crossbow, aimed at the back left wolf, Stiles conceded that today was most definitely not his day.

_“Damn, Allison! You beat our asses again!” Stiles was really impressed that Allison was so good at Call of Duty, considering this was their first time playing. Although she was ranked with the best aim of their class, so not so surprising he guessed._

_Smiling, Allison narrowed her eyes at him, “Well you didn’t expect me to just stroke your egos and let you win, did you?”_

_“Would have been nice to win one game,” Stiles grumbled half-heartedly. He scowled when Allison laughed and ruffled his hair as she got up to get snacks._

_Lydia looked over at him, flipping her strawberry blonde hair over one shoulder. “Honestly, I don’t know why you guys like playing these games. It’s nothing like shooting a gun in real life, a useful skill you could improve at the range. Also, the subject matter is too close to what we go through on a day to day basis. I mean really, Stiles, why would you play a game primarily focused on war as an escape from the day to day realities of what is essentially a war?”_

_Shrugging, Stiles put down the controller and angled his body to face Lydia. She had a good point, but the answer was simple. “I can control this if I mess up. It’s as easy as restarting the mission.” He paused, running a hand through his hair, “There are no reset buttons in real life. At least here, playing this game, I can work off some nerves. Hell, we all can. Less nervous we are, less chance we have of screwing up. Ya know what I mean, Lyds?”_

_Lydia’s eyes softened, and for a minute there was a crack in her cool facade. She strode towards Stiles, and wrapped him in a fierce hug. “I know… just be careful. Promise me you will come back. I can’t lose you too.”_

_Returning the hug, he replied, “I promise, Lyds. I promise.” Everyone knew how upset Lydia was when Jackson left the encampment in search of his birth parents last fall. The goddess that is Lydia Martin would never admit to such a weakness, but she didn’t have to; not to the people that really knew her. No matter what happened, Stiles would make sure he came back to his friends, no, his family._

“Well, well, well. What have we got here?” The would be leader of the scraggly gang of wolves opened up with. “You a long way from home little wolf, aren’t you?” They all grinned, mouth full of razor sharp teeth.

Raising his hands in the universal ‘surrender’ gesture, “I don’t want any trouble, just passing through. You guys just go on your way, I’ll go on mine. No one has to get hurt.” Bless Scott and his ideals, Stiles lined up his sights; he would get one shot, and he wasn’t going to blow it.

The filthy wolves laughed at Scott’s suggestion, and the one doing the talking sneered at Scott, “No one needs to get hurt eh? Well, whatever stunt you pulled in the hunter territory brought them this way. The hunters killed one of our own, seems to us someone ought to answer to that.” Snarling, the wolves moved to circle Scott, who was thoroughly wolfed out at this point.

Before they could attack Scott, Stiles raised his crossbow and fired at the wolf who was talking. During the chaos he fired again, while Scott swiped his claws at one of the wolves. Sensing his position would be discovered soon, Stiles took advantage of the confusion and hopped branches to a near by tree. He loaded his crossbow and fired again.

While Stiles was raining arrows from above, Scott continued to dodge and parry attacks from the three. When he got close to one of the wolves as it was pulling an arrow out, Scott dug his claws into the other wolf’s belly and pulled, yanking intestines out while the other howled in pain. The other wolves looked wary, and backed off slightly; that was all the warning Scott needed to take off. Stiles followed him, while staying in the trees, keeping his crossbow locked and loaded.

The other wolves followed them, but they would try to avoid the remaining two wolves for as long as possible.

_Stiles and Scott were paired together for the Rogue Patrol, as he was calling it, probably because his dad knew they would find a way to patrol together regardless of the roster. They were searching for clues in the south-west quadrant on foot, while Allison and Lydia perched on top of the wall in prime sniping positions. As they continued looking for any clues, Scott bumped shoulders with Stiles and turned saying, “I’m gonna propose to Allison when we get back. Got the ring and everything.”_

_“Dude that’s awesome!” Stiles clapped his friend on the back, “I’m so happy for you guys! It just goes to show that even in this shithole of a world, where monsters roam free, that it is possible to find happiness.” He tried not to sound too bitter with the last words, because he really was happy for Scott. He just wished he could find his own happiness too. Seemingly oblivious to Stiles inner turmoil, Scott went on about how perfect the ring was, and where he was going to pop the question. Apparently Deputy Argent had already given his blessing to it. Scott did nudge his shoulder lightly and side eye him._

_“Don’t worry Stiles, you’ll find someone,” Ah this was one of the rare times Scott was insightful, “I’m sure they’ll be awesome as hell, and then the four of us will go on double dates!”_

_Stiles grimaced at the thought of a double date, but smiled all the same. “I know man, I know.” Before Stiles could change the subject, he heard a strange noise. Looking at Scott, he knew the other heard something as well. Just as he was about to speak, a loud flapping noise sounded and looking up the recruit could see what looked like every bird for a mile taking to the sky. “Well that’s not ominous,” he said looking at Scott, who seemed just as perturbed._

_He had just enough time to hear Scott yell, “RUN!” before he was nearly trampled by a stampede of deer. He and Scott were separated, but not before they heard a loud growling and saw red glowing eyes. Stiles felt the blood in his veins go cold at the sight. He had never seen a werewolf up close, with the exception of the one time he saw the games, and never one with red glowing eyes. Knowing his crossbow wouldn’t do much, he slung it over his shoulder and climbed the nearest tree as fast as he could and radioed for backup._

_“I have sight of the wolf. I repeat: I have sight of the wolf. It ambushed us in the south-west quadrant.”_

_“Do you have eyes on your partner?” The dispatch asked calmly._

_“Negative, we were separated by a deer stampede just prior to the wolf ambushing us. Sending you the last known coordinates now.” Stiles kept running through the trees trying to find Scott. He used the GPS tracker in the other recruits radio and followed the trail._

_“We are sending back up your way.”_

_“10-4.” Putting his radio back down he raised his crossbow as he tracked his way to Scott, pausing only once when he heard the low growling of the wolf._

_When he caught sight of Scott, the relief he felt was short lived when he realized the other recruit was down, and not moving. As he approached Scott, crossbow ready in case the wolf was still around, he felt his heart sink. Scott had been bitten, and even though he was still breathing, this was a death sentence in the compound. Kneeling down, he gasped when Scott opened his eyes; They glowed wolf yellow, and his bite wound was healing right before Stiles’ eyes. Before he could speak he heard a disgusted gasp behind him. Turning he saw the governor, Gerard Argent, standing there looking at Scott in disgust. He made his displeasure of the relationship between Scott and his granddaughter well known, and now the bastard had all the ammo he needed to tear them apart._

_“Well, well. It looks like one of you got bit.” He yanked Stiles back as he approached Scott and snapped the wolfsbane manacles in place. With a cool smile, the governor remarked, “Looks like today just isn’t your day, eh Scotty boy?”_

_Stiles cringed at the implication, and felt a hand on his shoulder before he could rush back to Scott’s aid. He looked up to see Deputy Argent looking grimly at Scott, before turning a sympathetic look at him. Scott was bitten, and now they would sentence him to death. What was he going to tell Allison? How would he tell Scott’s mom? He could hear Scott saying he felt fine, and pleading for his life before he was knocked out and dragged off. How could Scott still have speech after being turned? Stiles looked at Scott’s form being dragged away by the officers as he contemplated doing the stupidest thing of his entire life._

_He was gonna break Scott out._

While running, Scott stayed mindful of Stiles zig zagging through the trees. When the other wolves got a little too close, Stiles fired a flash arrow to confuse their senses. He could see Scott cover his ears while continuing to run. The other wolves writhed on the ground for a bit, giving Stiles enough time to catch up to Scott. 

"We'll fucking kill you for this!" screamed one of the wolves as they caught back up. Scott, seeing his opening, jumped up and bounced off the tree in front of him and landed behind the wolf that spoke. Confused and unable to shift his momentum quick enough, he was gouged by Scott in the shoulder. Howling in pain he jumped away, slashing Scott across the chest in the process. Scott grunted in pain as blood soaked through his shirt from the claw marks. Eyes flashing yellow, Scott snarled at the other wolf as they circled one another. 

When the other wolf was about to strike Scott, Stiles fired an arrow through his calf, bolting him to the ground. The wolf howled in agony and rage as he yanked the arrow out. He flung the arrow at Stiles previous position while yelling obscenities. The teen remained focused on the wolf, shifting his position while seemingly maintaining his anonymity.

"I'll give you one last chance to leave me be. No one else needs to die, I just want to be on my way." Scott, ever the pacifist, was still trying to reason with the others. The other wolf snarled, eyes flashing blue momentarily before responding with the arrogance of someone who thinks they have already won

"You're wrong. You and your pet human in the trees still need to die!" With that the blue eyed wolf lunged at Scott. They fell to the ground and were locked in a tussle so close that Stiles couldn't get a clear shot without risking Scott. The point was moot, however, because while he was so engrossed with Scott's fight; Stiles lost track of the second wolf. The wolf who just jumped at him, knocking him out of the tree. 

Luckily Stiles was able to grab his wits long enough to land properly and roll out of the way. Standing, Stiles dropped his crossbow in favor of his bowie knife and assumed a defensive fighting stance. When the slobbering wolf lunged at him, he side stepped and rolled away; clipping the wolf in the side as put about three feet between them. Growling, the wolf attempted to circle Stiles, but the teen was smart and made sure to never give the wolf his back. He feinted left, drawing the wolf to him, and when the beast fell for it, Stiles dug the bowie knife into its flank. As it howled in pain, it lashed at Stiles, knocking him into a near by tree.

The teen saw stars as his head smacked against the tree with an audible crack. When he tried to get up, he was hit with a strong bout of nausea and pain so intense it was a race to see if he would vomit or pass out first. Either way he collapsed to the ground, and the world around him when fuzzy. Stiles could vaguely make out that Scott was now standing guard in front of him before he slipped into unconsciousness. The teen wondered how much dying would suck, if it would hurt or be a relief, as the darkness claimed him.

_Allison was trying to hold back from bursting into tears every five seconds and failing since Stiles told her what happened. It was no surprise when she offered to help break Scott out, although she thought it prudent that she stay behind to keep people off of his and Scott’s trail. Stiles reluctantly agreed that more searchers would be sent to find them if Allison was with them. “Here Stiles, take this,” She said while handing him her new crossbow, “If you and Scott are going past the territory line, you’ll need it. I just need to know you’ll both be safe.” She said the last while looking at him with tears in her eyes._

_Hugging her fiercely Stiles responded, “I won’t let you down Alli. And I promise we’ll come back for you.” Separating they head out to the holding area. They only have one shot at this while everyone is distracted with tracking the rogue’s new lead and they won’t waste it._

_When they reached the holding cells where Scott would be they made short work of the two guards on staff, knocking them out. They wound down the halls, checking each area for Scott, before moving on. They finally found the block where Scott was being held. The new wolf looked devastated, tear tracks running down his face and obvious gouges on the floor where he was sitting; obvious that he had been raking his claws against the cement. As they came into view he perked up and ran to the edge of the cage, careful not to touch the bars._

_“Allison! Stiles! What are you guys doing here? You’ll be charged for treason for even coming back here.” He seemed genuinely worried for their sakes._

_All of the air seemed to rush from Allison’s lungs as she ran to the cage, “Scott! You’re still you! I know Stiles said you hadn’t gone mad from the bite, but I wasn’t sure.” She reached through the bars and caressed Scott’s new sideburns, while he cupped her hand on his face._

_“Of course I’m still me Allison. I don’t know why, but the bite didn’t make me crazy. We must have been wrong, or maybe I’m different,” He smiled at Allison while still gripping her hand tight._

_“Got it!” Stiles exclaimed as he picked the lock. As the teen stood he opened the door to Scott’s cell, “C’mon Scotty! We’re bustin’ ya out!” He kept a goofy grin on his face, despite how terrified he felt by the prospect of disobeying the governor’s rules._

_The trio made their way to the southern gate, which wouldn’t be guarded as heavily with the current confusion. As they made their way, Stiles adverted his gaze to give Scott and Allison some semblance of privacy to say their goodbyes._

_“I promise I’ll come back for you Allison, I promise.” Scott and Allison shared another tearful hug, before he turned to Stiles. “I’m ready,” Stiles nodded and asked Allison to watch out for his dad, then he and Scott were on their way out of the encampment._

Stiles jolted awake at the sound of a loud, terrifying howl. He cringed, knowing that if he and Scott couldn’t handle three wolves that there was no way they could take on anymore. While the two in front of them were focused on Scott, Stiles grabbed his crossbow from where it fell; thankfully it was close by. He loaded an arrow and aimed it at the wolves in front, he had to play this smart though. There was no way he and Scott could win this with Stiles injured, but they might be able to get away. Just as he was calculating trajectories, and figuring the most efficient place to aim, the blue eyed wolves caught him off guard by laughing.

“You pieces of shit are in for it now,” The one who had been fighting Scott snarled out through what could barely be considered a smile, “Hale hates humans more than we do, and with the hunter camp you come from? He’ll kill both of you on the spot.” 

His partner laughed a full belly laugh, “Yeah, we won’t have to lift a finger. You guys are as good as dead anyway, might as well let us kill you. We won’t make it hurt…. much. Hale will make you suffer.” There was a mad glint in his eye, and Stiles couldn’t help but think that whoever this ‘Hale’ person was, he did not want to meet him.

Scott snarled at them, eyes flashing yellow, fangs and claws coming out, “If you think we’re just gonna roll over and die than you can forget it! Even if I die, we die, we’ll go down fighting.” Stiles nodded in agreement with Scott and steadied his crossbow, taking aim.

Both the wolves started growling at them and inching closer, as Scott dropped into a defensive stance. This was it. Stiles and Scott were preparing to make their last stand. If this was going to be it, they were going to make these wolves work for it. Just as the wolves looked ready to pounce, a blur came out of the trees and then it was pure chaos. 

Four wolves came out of the of the trees and made short work of the blue eyed wolves. They moved like a unit, something Stiles and Scott had never heard of the wolves doing. There were three men, and one woman--all of them looked powerful. The woman, a blonde femme fatale, looked at the blue eyed wolves, her eyes flashing yellow with disdain, “Omegas. You should know better than show your face around here.” The blue eyed wolves cowered at the insult and tried to make themselves seem lower.

“The-they brought th-the hunters here. The hunters we-were looking for them. We-” The sniveling wolf was interrupted by the tall light skinned wolf with soft baby blonde curls, and snarling yellow eyes. 

“You thought what? That you would kill them, and make the hunters happy? Clearly if the hunters want them dead, we should at least question them to see why. After all we want the opposite of what the hunters want.” Although the broad mocha skinned wolf stayed silent throughout the ordeal, he nodded in agreement with his friends? Allies? It didn’t matter, as long as they didn’t kill Scott and Stiles.

Finally the leader of the newcomers came forward, if possible the ones called omegas slunk down even further as this wolf’s eyes flashed a vibrant red. Stiles felt his heart rate skyrocket, the wolf who bit Scott had red eyes too and so far this guy was the only one with red eyes. The red eyed wolf flicked his eyes to Stiles and Scott briefly, before returning to the scum in front of him. Standing to his full height he growled “Leave!” at them, and they tripped over their feet to obey the order.

Without the omegas to buffer, the newcomer’s attention was solely on the two teens. Scott growled in warning eyes flashing yellow as they approached.

“Looks like the pup thinks he has teeth,” The blonde bombshell said while giving a smile that showed too many teeth to be friendly to Scott. The red eyed wolf growled at her, “Enough Erica.” The she-wolf, Erica, seemed to pout at that, “C’mon Derek, I just wanna have a little fun with him. His friend’s kinda cute too,” Stiles shrunk back at that and kept the crossbow aimed at the Erica. Derek growled and the other three wolves, including Erica, slunk behind him.

He turned his full attention on Scott asking why they were here, and when Scott explained how the Argents sentenced him to death after being bitten they all growled. When he regaled how Stiles broke him out, wisely leaving Allison out of it, the wolves turned to look at the teen curiously; like they couldn’t understand his motivations. One thing was obvious, they didn’t seem to take Stiles and Scott to be threats. Stiles was still feeling nauseous from being flung against a tree full force and noticed the world start swaying. Or maybe he was swaying. He saw Scott’s face, getting fuzzier by the second, as he tried to yell something at Stiles. Only Stiles couldn’t hear him, everything was going black for Stiles. “I think I’m gonna-” the teen slurred before passing out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be from Derek's POV


	2. Meeting Derek

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We see Derek's side of things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was beta'd by the lovely MissThief.

_Derek walked down the corridor to Laura's office in silence. Usually when Laura wanted to ask him something, or talk to him she came to his room; she never summoned him, and never as 'the alpha'. Of course he was always aware of her position, but she never used it as an advantage over him. If she was doing so now, it meant she was serious and he couldn't refuse. He wouldn't have anyway, after all he may have been an alpha, but she was still THE alpha. Still his alpha. Shaking his head he entered her office._

_Laura was standing by the window, as opposed to sitting at her desk, gazing at the pack lands. From the fourth floor office, it was easy to see the western side of the capital. The building where the office was located was situated in the middle of the territory. It was a symbol of the Hale pack's influence over the sub packs. As a sign of respect all sub pack alphas, Derek included, stayed in the main building when in the capital._

_"Derek," Laura acknowledged him, turning to face him. Gesturing to the seats in the office she told him, "have a seat, won't you." It wasn't really a question, regardless of phrasing. Derek sat down anyway. "As you are aware, hunters from the north have been encroaching on our territory. We believe this is due to a rogue alpha within their borders." At Derek's nod she continued, "I want you to take your core betas," she meant Isaac, Erica, and Boyd of course, "and go investigate. Do not enter the hunter's territory, and do not engage any hunters. This is recon only." Derek left when she dismissed him to gather his pack. They would leave in the evening time, and hopefully escape detection in the cover of night._

The alpha loved running through the territory with his betas. While running along the northern border they caught the scent of the rogue a few times, but it always looped back into the hunters territory. He was getting frustrated, and judging by the growls from his compatriots, he wasn't the only one.

"Damn it! We've been at this for hours! Where the hell is this bastard hiding?" During her tirade, Erica kicked a rock hard enough to get stuck in the trunk of the tree in front of her. "How the hell is he dodging us and the hunters?"

Isaac glared at Erica and snapped, "If we knew that, we wouldn't be here!" She glared back at him, ready to snap back physically judging by her flashing eyes, and lengthened claws.

"Enough! Both of you!" Derek growled out, letting the alpha command enter his voice as his eyes flashed red. Baring their throats in submission his betas calmed down.

Boyd went over to where Erica was fuming and squeezed her shoulder. Isaac stoically avoided eye contact with him, reeking of shame at having provoked the other beta. Just as Derek was about to assure Isaac he wasn't mad, just frustrated with the situation, an arrow whizzed past his head and embedded in a tree. Cursing under his breath, he took off motioning for his betas to follow. Of course they managed to not only miss the rogue, but attract the attention of hunters in the process.

_After informing his pack of their mission and departure time Derek was on his way back to his room. He liked the solitude before a mission, it gave him a chance to think; Really think about what was at stake. Unfortunately fate had other plans as his uncle Peter, an alpha in his own right, stopped him before he reached his destination. Derek barely bit back his growl as Peter chuckled._

_“Now, now dear nephew no need to be so unpleasant. You get to go off on a great mission in the name of our alpha, my dear niece!” If sarcasm was a sport, no doubt Peter would be in first place every time, “What’s there to be upset about? It isn’t as if you’re stuck patrolling the wastes like some of us. You should be more thankful to hold such favor with our great alpha.” His tone of voice was saccharine even if his words held a hint of bitterness._

_“You know exactly why Laura doesn’t trust you to do much else, and frankly I agree with her,” Derek bit out through clenched teeth. It was no secret that Peter went mad after the fire, and personally culled the ranks of dissention. Although Laura would be forever grateful for it, it didn't excuse the fact that Peter was so hungry for power during his grief fueled tirade for vengeance, that he tried to kill Laura for her status as head alpha of the California packs. The only reason Peter was even still alive, was the fact that he was one of the last of their family. If he wasn’t a Hale, Laura would have publically ripped out his throat as a message._

_Peter’s eyes narrowed; apparently he didn’t appreciate being called out for what he was. Just as quickly he schooled his expression. “Ah yes, my ill advised coup. You’ll forgive me if I plead insanity dear nephew, won’t you? I was, after all, not all there at the time. Being so driven by grief and all that.” The way he dismissed his actions so carelessly was infuriating. As if to trivialize the fact that he nearly mauled to death one of his last two remaining family members._

_“Did you have something to say to me, Peter? Or are just trying to piss me off?” The young alpha’s eyes flashed red as growled out the words. The elder wolf’s eyes flashed red in response to the challenge before returning to their normal hue._

_“Careful nephew, no need to get your undergarments in a twist. I merely wanted to wish you and your betas good luck. I never intended to upset you so.” The way Peter said it, Derek almost believed the older alpha was sincere. Almost. It’s been a long time since Derek could trust Peter. The last time he had trusted the man, his sister almost died, he wouldn’t make that mistake again._

_Derek nodded at his uncle, and walked away without another word. He swore he heard Peter snicker at his haste to get away from the man._

“Are you sure we can’t just kill the damn hunters?” Erica griped while dodging more arrows, “it would certainly be a hell of a lot easier than this!”

The alpha shook his head, “No Erica, our mission is recon. If we kill these hunters, we’re practically inviting them to come further into our territory.” The wolf picked up his speed and the betas followed suit. It wasn’t long before they lost the hunters, and Derek motioned for Boyd to go left, Isaac to go right, and Erica to circle around back; behind the hunters. The alpha climbed into the trees to get a better view of who ran into them. Even though they weren’t going to kill the hunters, it never hurt to have your enemies flanked.

Derek froze as the hunters came into view. Two of them walked into the area that he was observing from his perch. One man armed with a crossbow and one woman armed with an assault rifle, although the two seem average in build, one could easily see how powerful they were by the way they carried themselves. The man looked down at the tracks the alpha and his betas left, confused. They purposefully zig zagged to mix the tracks up for the hunters.

“Looks like we lost them, Kate,” The man said pausing. Derek’s blood ran cold at the name; it can’t possibly be her. He hoped his luck wasn’t that bad. When he heard the responding laugh, he knew it was.

“C’mon Chris! Don’t give up that easily, I’m sure the mutts are around here somewhere… Maybe if we’re lucky, it was one of the Hales that killed that poor english teacher in the woods. I haven’t seen one of them in a while,” The blonde woman, Derek now recognized as Kate Argent, smirked coldly at the possibility of eradicating more of the alpha’s family. He barely held back from growling, only managing to do so to keep from giving away his position.

Chris shook his head and glared at Kate, “It doesn’t matter which of those animals killed Ms. Blake. Hale or not, it is our job to kill them, and I care much for you borrowing trouble,” The man kept his crossbow readied, and his eyes alert. If anything he was the deadly soldier that all young wolves were taught to avoid, when Kate was the type of snake they should really avoid. Better to be shot in the face then stabbed in the back. Or in Kate’s case, have your family burned to death.

“Aw, Chris don’t be like that. I’m only trying to have a little fun on patrol! If the Hales are dumb enough to come this far north, then they deserve to be put down like the animals they are.” The blonde stood confidently, with her gun resting casually on her shoulder and looking off guard for all intents and purposes. Derek knew better, and he willed his betas to know better. She was banking on one of them being a Hale or part of the pack, and purposefully bating them.

“Put them down, Kate. Not torture them. They might be half animal, but you forget they’re also half human. If we don’t have the decency to eliminate them the humane way, it makes us worse than those we hunt. At least they have the excuse of being half beast for acting like monsters, what’s ours?” While Derek could admit that Chris was probably the most decent hunter he had come across, he still didn’t like the man. The alpha didn’t like any human that referred to them as beasts, but at least he didn’t kill the for fun. No just some misguided sense of morality, he isn’t sure which would be worse.

Kate just shook her head at Chris but didn’t offer anymore wisdom. She even followed his lead when he suggested they head back to their encampment. To their own territory. As the two walked away, Derek couldn’t help but sigh in relief. When Kate neared his tree, she looked up at where he was, and Derek felt his veins go cold. Smirking she stared for a while longer, almost like she knew he was there, before turning to follow Chris. At his question of why she stopped she merely replied, “Thought I saw something.” Derek remains in his hiding spot until they are no longer in wolf hearing range, and a good five minutes after that. When his betas return to him, they don’t mention anything though he knows they heard how his heart rate skyrocketed in response to the hunters.

_"Heard you ran into uncle bad touch," Erica said to him as she knocked on his door frame._

_Prior to Erica's entrance, Derek had been sitting in his room, quietly glaring at wall. Running into Peter always upset his mood without fail. It was just another reminder of how badly he failed his family when he made the mistake of trusting Kate. Peter may have always been manipulative to a fault, but he was never truly crazy until after the fire. Derek supposed that being in a six year coma could do that to someone, especially after seeing your whole family burn around you; his mistake made Peter that way. It was his fault, his cross to bear._

_Glancing at Erica, he grunted affirmatively. The blonde beta rolled her eyes, "so, let me guess--Peter was a dick, as usual, and made some snide remark about you getting special treatment because he's stuck patrolling who gives a fuck where, and now you're brooding over it and letting him ruin your whole mood?" He didn't respond, just scowled at his beta while she grinned. "I knew I was right!"_

_"Right about what? Uncle creeper putting our alpha in a pissy mood?" And that would be Isaac now poking his head into the room. Derek guessed it would be too much to ask for privacy in a pack of wolves._

_"Did you guys just come here to piss me off? Or did you want something?" Derek practically growled out. His betas remained unfazed and pushed their way into his room._

_Boyd was with them, but thankfully remained quiet on the Peter situation, before saying, "we just wanted to go over the mission specs with you."_

_Grateful for the topic change, the alpha explained what Laura expected of them. He also made sure to look pointedly at Erica as he told them they were not to engage the hunters. She gave him a bitchface in return, but he knew she was the most hot headed and didn't apologize._

_"We've still got a few hours before we head out. I suggest everyone get a little sleep, as we will be out all night." The betas nodded in understanding._

_And if they all curled around their alpha for naptime? He wasn't going to say anything._

When the betas were certain the alpha had calmed from the near encounter with the hunters, Isaac cleared his throat. Derek snapped his eyes to the young wolf, sighing Isaac motioned for Derek and the others to follow him, “I think you guys better come take a look at this,” 

There was a wolf, judging by the state of his clothing and hygiene, an omega lying dead on the forest floor with an arrow sticking out of his shoulder. “Hunters,” Derek practically growled, eyes flashing red.

Isaac shook his head in disagreement and flipped the body, so the dead wolf was now on its back. From this position the true cause of death was easily discerned. It was obvious that the wolf’s throat had been ripped out by another werewolf. There were other injuries that looked like claw marks over the body’s torso and chest. 

“Unless the hunters are working with wolves now? I’d have to say no.” Isaac replied.

Erica growled in frustration, “That doesn’t make any sense! How do we know that whoever fired these arrows,” she said while plucking an arrow from the tree it was stuck into, “is working with whoever gouged out that unlucky bastard’s throat?”

“Erica’s right. It could have been happenstance, or an alliance of convenience. The fact that arrows were shot and his throat was clawed out, isn’t enough to assume there’s a rogue hunter working with a wolf.” The alpha growled in frustration. He had once made the mistake of believing a hunter to be a sympathizer; he would not make that mistake again.

Boyd who had been silent up until that point approached the group from where he had been observing the evidence of the fight that took place. “Whether the person who fired the arrows is a hunter or not, he was definitely working with the wolf.” Boyd pauses, and everyone quiets at his words, Derek included. Everyone was curious as to how he deduced this, but it was Boyd’s mate, Erica, who spoke up first.

“How do you figure that? The smells and tracks are so muddled up, it’s too difficult to say that with absolute certainty…”  
Boyd smiled fondly at his mate while shaking his head in infinite patience. Derek envied how his young beta could remain so calm, “If you come by tree where the arrow Erica plucked was fired from, the scents are more separate. It seems likely that this is the direction they were coming from,”

Isaac’s eyes widened almost comically when he noted where Boyd assumed the others came from, “Back that way is the hunter’s compound…” Boyd nodded in agreement with the other beta.

“That’s correct. If you go a few feet further,” Boyd walked in the direction the scents discerned the others had come from, “The scents diverge.” The beta pointed left, “That direction is where the three omegas, including the dead one came from,” He then pointed right, “and that is the direction that the fourth wolf, and the hunter--I guess I should say human, came from. Their scents are so entwined, it’s clear they were traveling together… Away from the hunter encampment.” Derek shook his head at Boyd’s words. He didn’t want to believe that they might run into a sympathizer, but everything Boyd said was right.  
Before he could ponder further, he and the betas heard two roars. Derek’s head snapped towards the noise while his betas looked to him, eyes flashing at the thrill of a hunt. Derek let his eyes flash red as he roared back in answer, then he and the betas took off.

_Before heading out, Derek and his betas stopped by Deaton's office. Deaton was one of only a handful of humans allowed in the capital, and was the only one allowed in the main building. He was the only person Laura trusted to handle the forbidden plants like wolfsbane and rowan oak; mountain ash. Everyone had to be checked over prior exiting the capitol for a mission and were also given a kit containing the common strains of wolfsbane, just in case they were shot by a hunter._

_"First Alpha Hale. I've been expecting you and your betas. The High Alpha briefed me on what region your mission will be in." The healer turned around and grabbed a small box. Facing the wolves he continued, "This box contains the main three strains used by hunters in that region. If shot, simply identify the correct strain through smell, burn a little, and press the ashes in the wound. It will hurt, but it will heal."_

_The betas looked at the box with wary awe. It was times like this that reminded Derek just how young his betas were, how little of the outside world they have actually seen._

_"What happens if we use the wrong wolfsbane? By accident?" Isaac spoke up after a few minutes of silence._

_Smiling, Deaton responded calmly, "Let's just try not to have any accidents. They can be most.... unpleasant.... to say the least." Isaac visibly gulped at that._

_Erica rolled her eyes at the other wolf, “don’t be such a pup, Isaac!” She paused to hop up on the table for Deaton to examine her, “Deaton just said as long as we use our sniffers, we’ll be fine.”_

_The beta made a face at Erica calling him a pup but continued, “I’m just worried about what would happen if we made a mistake! What unpleasant things could happen… What-”_

_“Enough!” The alpha looked at Isaac and Erica, eyes flashing red. Days like this he wished Boyd was his only beta, “Just because we’re taking the wolfsbane, doesn’t mean we’ll have to use it. In fact, based on the scope of our assignment, it’s likely that it will just sit in the pack unused and be returned to the doctor afterwards.” He looked to Deaton for confirmation and the doctor nodded._

_“That’s absolutely right, First Alpha Hale. The things I give you before an assignment, are merely to prepare you for as many outcomes as possible. When you come back for your re entry examination, you’ll just leave any unused items with me to save for the next mission.”_

_The alpha nodded at Deaton as Erica stepped down and the doctor moved on to checking out Boyd. As she moved to step past Derek he grabbed her arm, “Stop tormenting Isaac. You’re pack mates, act like it.” The female wolf looked suitably chastised and nodded her head in agreement with her alpha._

_Once they had everything from Deaton and all checked out, they headed out towards the gate. To Derek’s surprise, Laura was waiting to see them off. Derek and his pack bared their necks in respect to the High Alpha. She chuckled and waved them off, muttering an ‘at ease’ playfully._

_“Not that I don’t appreciate the send off, but why? Did you have something to tell us?” Laura laughed in response, ruffling Derek’s hair as he scowled._

_“Can’t I see my baby brother off without an ulterior motive?” She shook her head and engulfed Derek in a hug. The other alpha went stiff before hugging his older sister back, “I just came to tell you be safe. This is the Argent’s main encampment you’ll be sniffing around, so just watch your back… Ok?” Pulling back from the hug, he smiled at Laura and nodded affirmatively before heading out with his betas._

Before they reached where the sounds of fighting were coming from, Derek could smell that it was the same group who’s handy work they were just inspecting. As they got closer, he raised a hand; signalling to his betas to wait a moment. It appeared as though two wolves, omegas he noted, were fighting against a wolf and human. It was also worth noting that when the human became injured, the lone wolf positioned himself between the human and the other two wolves; protecting him. 

“Stop the fight, but don’t injure the human and the wolf protecting him,” the alpha growled out lowly. His three betas nodded and did just that. He could hear them chastising the omegas even as he came out, eyes glowing red.

As he made his way to where the omega wolves were subdued he heard a heartbeat ratchet up, even as he scented fear. He looked over to where the lone wolf and his human were and locked eyes with said human. There was no doubt that this male was a hunter, everything from the clothes to the gear practically screamed it. Yet he could see how the human stood close to the wolf, ready to protect or even die for his friend. This was a bond not often found between the two species, and the alpha couldn’t help but respect that.

Turning away from the odd human-wolf duo, Derek continued his approach towards the omegas. The two were trembling and stunk of fear. Sneering in disgust at the two craven wolves the alpha allowed his wolf to come out a bit as he growled, “Leave!” It seemed the cowardly wolves couldn’t escape fast enough, which was fine with him.

With the omegas gone, he and his betas turned their full attention on the odd duo. Noticing the new attention they gained the wolf growled and his eyes flashed beta yellow. This must have been the one the rogue had bitten.

Erica began taunting them until Derek used his alpha voice to make her cut it out. If this was the one bitten by the rogue, Laura would want to see him alive. Afterall, bitten betas have a particular connection with the alpha that bit them. This would be the best lead they had so far, and could hopefully lead them to the rogue sooner.

These suspicions were confirmed when the beta regaled his tale of escaping a death sentence for being bitten. His respect for the human went up immensely after hearing how the young hunter not only broke him out of jail, but helped cover his tracks to better escape. Inspite of everything that must have been instilled in both them, instead of choosing the easy option they chose freedom.

The young beta, Scott, turned to his friend, who seemed to be swaying, “Stiles! Hey, are you ok?” The human, Stiles, cocked his head to the side as though he was trying to make sense of what Scott was saying. The alpha noticed that blood seemed to be trickling down from a head wound. “I think I’m gonna-” the teen slurred before passing out. Luckily Scott caught him before he fell to the ground, but he promptly began freaking out.

“Oh my god! Stiles!” The new beta looked helplessly at Derek and his trio asking, “You gotta help him! I don’t- I didn’t think it was this bad…”

The alpha nodded at him, “I was going to insist you come back to the capitol anyway. We have a human doctor there who should be able to help your friend. While he is being treated, the High Alpha will want to question you about the rogue.”

Scott looked absolutely distraught at his friend’s condition, “You promise you’ll help? I have your word?” At Derek’s nod the young beta stood up, carrying his friend. He eyed them a little warily and said, “Lead the way…” 

The rest of the trip back was fairly silent, with the exception of the occasional bickering between Erica and Isaac. It was close to nightfall by the time they reached the gates, meaning hardly anyone was around them aside from necessary personnel. Of those there, nearly everyone gaped at the sight of not only a new wolf, but a new human entering. The alpha had no doubt that Laura would be aware of their arrival by the time they reached Deaton’s office.

Sure enough, when they got to Deaton’s, Laura was already waiting for them and a bed was already prepared for Stiles. Laura kept an impassive mask as the human was turned over to Deaton before she finally spoke.

“Isaac, Erica, Boyd. You are to stand guard on the hunter. Isaac will have first shift. The moment he is awake I want to be notified.” Scott looked ready to blow a fuse, feeling insulted no doubt.

“I thought he wasn’t going to be harmed! You said you were going to help him, not treat him like a prisoner!” Laura remained impassive, but quirked her lips a bit at the young beta’s outburst. Derek had to bite his tongue to keep from reprimanding him for speaking to THE alpha in such a tone.

“You misunderstand me, pup. Your friend will be treated for his wounds, and no harm will come to him while he is in my care. However, look at this from my perspective if you will. A strange hunter is in my territory, one I have yet to speak with and discern his intentions. One who will be waking up in an unfamiliar place, and might not react rationally. This is as much for his protection as it is ours. You are more than welcome to stay with him, pup. That way you can be certain he is treated fairly.” Scott scowled but nodded any way.

Once they were done with Deaton, he followed Laura to her office to give his report. He told the story of how they found Scott and Stiles, and could feel his alpha’s rage at how the new beta was treated. She also seemed to have a similar reaction to the human’s willingness to help, but still wanted to talk to Stiles when he woke up.

“Well baby brother, it seems like you’ve had quite the adventure. Even though the scope of your mission changed, you handled well. You handled it as I would have, and in the end we now have a physical link to the rogue through Scott, as well as a healthy beta with the inner workings of an Argent stronghold.” Derek felt his wolf preen at such a high praise from his alpha, but nodded rather than speak. “Your next assignment will be tough, but I know you can handle it. I’m assigning you to be Scott and Stiles’ acting alpha, provided the human is trustworthy of course. It will be your job to make sure they are integrated into the pack as quickly and smoothly as possible.”

Derek nodded at Laura, “I won’t let you down, Laura.” The other alpha smiled at him and ruffled his hair.

“I know you won’t Der-bear!” He scowled at the nickname and swatted his sister’s hand away. Walking back to his room he reflected on how much could change in a day. He woke up with three betas this morning, and now he would add one more new beta who had god knows what kind of control, and a hunter. It was going to be a challenge integrating them into the pack, but Derek always loved a good challenge. If nothing else, this would at least prove to be interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, you'll notice I killed Jennifer Blake off. I was having none of that shit in my head canon.


	3. Waking Up to New Truths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles learns some interesting things, contradicting what he was taught. How will he react? Will Peter, once again, be a bitch? (The answer is probably yes to the last one)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this was beta'd by my roommate MissThief... But seeing as we are both kind of drunk, it might still have some issues with the tenses... I will fix them when I am no longer inebriated.

The first thing Stiles registered as he started coming to was the pounding in his head. He groaned, loudly at that, and like waving a magic wand Scott was there.

"He's awake!"

'Yeah, no shit' Stiles thought grumpily. Other things like 'he has a headache' or 'he wants to know where the fuck he is' floundered around his mind for a bit as he took inventory of his situation. Stiles looked to be in a hospital room. It was sterile, white, and uncomfortable. Wincing, he touched his head gingerly taking note of the bandage there. Looking down at his body, the human noticed bandages on his arms, legs, and torso. Thankfully no casts. He was just about to ask Scott where they were when someone spoke.

"So you're finally awake. You gave us all a bit of a scare for a while, Mr. Stilinski."

The man, presumably the doctor who patched him up judging by the lab coat he was wearing, gave Stiles a warm smile. The doctor had dark skin and a shaved head. He carried a clipboard, and didn't seem the type to offer just what was on it. Sighing, Stiles tried to speak only to cough. Scott rushed a glass of water over to him, which Stiles gratefully accepted. When he finally spoke, his voice was raspy from disuse.

"Where the hell am I?"

The last thing he remembered was fighting the strange wolves. Then the one with glowing red eyes-

"Holy shit!" Stiles said while turning to face Scott. "Are we prisoners? Are they gonna kill us? Me? Why have my wounds treated just to kill me?"

Scott gave him a serious look, his eyes glowing bright yellow. "No one is going to hurt you, Stiles. They promised." Stiles remained unconvinced, but let the subject go as the doctor cleared his throat.

"Scott, why don't you let the alpha know that Mr. Stilinski is awake while I go over some things with him." Scott nodded and left, promising Stiles he would be back soon. The older man chuckled at Stiles wary look.

"Don't worry Mr. Stilinski, you have my word that I will not harm you. My name is Dr. Alan Deaton, and I am the resident physician here. I'm also a human just like you." The doctor moved to the chair that Scott recently vacated and continued. "Your injuries for the most part were superficial. The only real exception was the concussion from getting hit on the head so hard. I would suggest getting plenty of rest over the next few days, and avoiding another hit to the head."

Stiles eyed Deaton warily. "What's the point? Am I even gonna make it that long before they kill me?"

"Why do you assume that your death is the logical conclusion to being brought here?" Deaton seemed genuinely confused.

Stiles sat up into a more reclining position before he answered. "We've always been taught that wolves don't normally take prisoners. The few that have been taken were never seen again... We've always assumed the worst..."

The doctor frowned for a moment, before putting on a calming smile again. "I assure you, Mr. Stilinski, nothing of the sort will happen to you here. Once you've spoken to the alpha, everything will be a bit clearer."

Stiles shrugged, turning away from the doctor, intending the conversation to be over. Deaton, however, had other plans. "Have you ever heard of mountain ash?"

Stiles frowned at the question. "Well yeah. Everyone's heard of it. Apparently, only a few people have the natural talent necessary to wield it. Scott and I were gonna be tested on our first field raid. Guess I'll never know about myself, and Scott's a moot point now." He turned to face the doctor. "Wait, why does that matter?"

The doctor smiled, "You were close. It's not talent, it's a spark."

* * *

Derek was just heading out of Laura's office when the new wolf, Scott, burst through the door. "He's awake! Deaton said I should let you know."

Laura nodded at Scott, smiling. "I'll head right over. Derek? Why don't you take Scott to get acquainted with your pack, hmm?" Not really waiting for an answer, Laura headed out towards the infirmary to speak with the human. 

Looking towards the young wolf, Scott, Derek motions for him to follow and heads off towards his pack’s meeting place. Whether or not the human checked out, Scott still needed to be integrated properly with the rest of his pack. With the young wolf in tow, he entered the meeting room, where Erica, Isaac, and Boyd were all lounging around. At his entrance the three wolves all looked towards Scott and himself.

Erica grinned seductively, and immediately Derek knew she was up to no good. “So, we finally get introduced to the elusive Scott… I’m Erica.” The she wolf stuck her hand out for Scott to shake, and he reluctantly held out his own hand. He exhibited the same amount of trepidation one might when sticking their hand into a shark tank. Smart man.

“Nice to meet you, Erica… I think.” Isaac busted out laughing at that, while Erica looked slightly perturbed but said nothing otherwise. Isaac moved over to Scott, clapping him on the back companionably before holding out his own hand for the new beta to shake.

“Isaac. And the big guy over there is Erica’s mate, Boyd. I can already tell we’re going to get along fine.” Scott seemed to agree and nodded, walking off with Isaac. When the two weren’t paying attention, Derek called Boyd over. Being that Boyd was the most solid beta he had, with the best control, he was naturally Derek’s second in command.

“I want you to make sure he’s integrating well. Try and ease him into the idea of pack. He wasn’t born into this like me, or given the choice of the bite like you so it will be harder for him. Make sure he feels welcome, and answer any questions he has. If you can’t, send him to me.” At Boyd’s nod Derek heads over towards the infirmary to meet Laura. If the human was cleared, then Derek will need to work on getting him integrated into the pack as well. If not… well, his job getting Scott adjusted would get ten times harder.

* * *

So apparently Stiles had something called a spark, according to Deaton. This, in theory mind you, should allow him to wield mountain ash to make a barrier. It should also allow him to make ‘wolf-proof’ structures out of Rowan oak. The one catch was that he had to ‘believe’ it would work in order for it to work. Sounded like a bunch of magic fairy dust to Stiles but whatever, if he could use it, then maybe they would find him useful. 

They were just finishing up when a tall woman, with long dark hair and dark hazel eyes, entered the room. She walked in with an air of confidence about her, like she owned the place; maybe she did. There was no doubt in Stiles mind that this woman was who Deaton referred to as The Alpha. This was confirmed when she spoke.

“It’s nice to finally see you awake, Stiles. I trust you are feeling well now?” Ah, so she knew his name and was trying to throw him off balance by exorcising that knowledge. Smart.

“About as well as can be expected after being in somewhat of a coma for a day, Ms…?” He could be difficult too. Judging by the smirk she directed his way--the alpha expected some amount of obstinance on his part.

“Where are my manners?” Pausing the alpha extended her hand. “My name is Laura Hale, High Alpha of New California and the surrounding territories. You may address me as Laura or Alpha Hale. Never ‘Miss Hale’. It makes me feel old.” Stiles barked out a short laugh at that, feeling a bit more at ease. 

“Well then Alpha Hale, it’s nice to meet you.” She nodded in acknowledgment and agreement. Turning from him, she went to look out the window. Craning his neck, he could see that the window overlooked whatever encampment they were in. 

“Tell me, Stiles. What do you know of our people, the weres if you will.” Taking a deep breath, the former recruit pondered his answer. After a few minutes, he composed a worthy response.

“If you had asked me that question a week ago, I would have responded with ‘What’s to know?’ All of the ‘weres’ I had ever been exposed to were either dead, or feral and soon to be dead. We are taught from a young age that all wolves are feral. That they have no more cognitive reasoning than an actual wolf, and it’s a mercy to put the beasts down. That we should treat our bitten comrades as fallen; because death is a far kinder fate than losing your mind to the infection caused by the bite.” Both Deaton and Alpha Hale tense at his response. Not necessarily surprised at his response, but more surprised with his candid honesty. “A week ago, my best friend; my brother in arms hadn’t been bitten. A week ago, I had never witnessed a transformation, never witnessed first hand how much humanity remains post bite.” Stiles paused for a moment, and collected his thoughts. “Today, right now, I would say that I know next to nothing about weres. Only that what I have been taught since the uprising is grossly incorrect, and that just adds to the confusion. I do know one thing; Scott is still Scott. No matter that he’s a were, at his core, he’s still my brother.”

The alpha looked at him intensely for a moment, before smiling and looking back outside. “I’m glad to hear you feel that way. I know he feels the same about you, even going so far as challenging me to insure your safety. I know he didn’t mean anything by it, but it speaks to his loyalty to you.” Stiles let out a huge sigh. That definitely sounded like something Scott would do.

Scratching the back of neck and smiling warily at the alpha Stiles said, “I apologize. Scott can get a bit overzealous at the best of times.” She waved him off like it was no big deal. 

“I understand the need to protect one’s family. It’s actually a quite attractive quality in a new beta, if they can transfer that loyalty to the pack.” Stiles quirked his head to the side at her.

“You keep mentioning alphas and betas. I think someone even referred to other wolves as omegas. Is your society structured like an actual wolf pack, with alphas as leaders, betas as followers, and omegas as bottom of the totem pole?”

“Exactly like that, with two major exceptions. A High Alpha, like myself, presides over many different alphas that each control a sub pack. The sub packs make up the larger pack. Derek, the one who rescued you for example, is a leader of one of the sub packs; an alpha in his own right. He still answers to me, however and his betas also answer to me by extension.” Stiles nodded as that made a certain amount of sense.

“So, Alpha Hale, as nice it’s been having the history lesson, where does it leave me? Why does it matter that I know about the culture, unless you plan on sparing me?” The young hunter didn’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth, but he knew better than to sugar coat anything. He got straight to the point. Laura looked at him sadly.

“It’s understandable that you would come to the conclusion that your life is forfeit to us, but sad all the same. Scott explained why you ran from the compound, and after speaking with you I believe you to be sincere.” Pausing the alpha walked over to where Stiles lay, and sat in one of the chairs by his side. “I have no interest in seeing you die. I believe, given the time and effort that you and Scott be invaluable assets to our cause.” Stiles adopted a look on his face akin to biting into a lemon. So _that_ was her angle.

“You need information on the opposition, and who better to get it from than two people who grew up under it.” He looked the High Alpha in the eyes for a long moment, before turning away. “Then what? Will you kill us, or me at least, when you get the information you need?” Turning back to face her, he continued. “I may be on the run from the authorities of my compound, but why would I help you in killing the people I love? I may not agree with their views on wolves, especially after seeing what happened with Scott, but it doesn’t mean I want them to _die!_ ”

At this point, Stiles wasn’t sure what the alpha’s angle was, but he wasn’t condemning his family to die so easily. The alpha blinked at him, “No one is asking you to condemn your family, and we won’t dispose of you just once we have the information. I’ll make you deal. You make an effort to integrate into Derek’s pack, Scott too, and if you don’t like how we run things… you can leave. If you decide to stay, the right intell could prevent blood shed on both sides.” She looked sincere, and although Stiles was still wary, he shook her hand figuring it was the best deal he was going to get. Hearing a noise by the door, he turned to see the alpha from before.

* * *

Derek entered the room where the human was being held and caught the tail end of his conversation with Laura. Well, at least he knew that he could now address the human about being part of his pack. Clearing his throat, he got the attention of all occupants in the room. He noticed Deaton was standing off to the side, observing, while Laura was finishing up her conversation with the human. She turned to him and smiled.

“Derek! What perfect timing. I was just telling Stiles about how he and Scott would be becoming part of your pack. Perhaps you can tell him what you expect from him?” He nodded at Laura’s not so subtle hint to get to know his charge as she and Deaton left to give them some privacy.

He looked at the hunter, sizing him up. The human, _Stiles_ , and he a bit underwhelmed. The human looked a bit small to be the same age as Scott, if he hadn’t seen evidence first hand of what the hunter was capable of; he might not have believed Stiles was a hunter. Even all bandaged up, he could tell the boy was attractive. Warm, whiskey brown eyes, framed by thick lashes; a cute upturned nose and cupid’s bow mouth. Pale, easily marked skin, and...yeah he was definitely Derek’s type. Sensing he had stared longer than was strictly necessary, he spoke. 

“As I’m sure you’ve figured out by now, my name is Derek Hale. I’m the alpha of the sub pack that you and Scott will be integrated into over the next few months. Being in a pack will be important for Scott, as it will help ground the wolf; make it easier to find an anchor for his humanity.” He saw what appeared to be a look of enlightenment on Stiles’ face. Maybe he already had an idea for Scott’s anchor. Good. “It will be easier for both of you, with each other joining. Your main purpose in the pack will be helping the other betas learn how to fight against hunters. You and Scott were both trained by them, but you will still be able to access tools that as wolf, Scott can’t.”

“You mean like mountain ash.” He was a bit surprised that Stiles even knew what it was. He was under the impression that most hunters didn’t fool with it. As if sensing his surprise, Stiles continued, “Uh, Dr. Deaton told me I have some kind of spark, and that I can use mountain ash as a result… sounds like fairy dust to me but whatever.” Derek cracked a grin at the last part of the statement.

“I’ve always thought so too. How can something work on just the power of ‘belief’? Although stranger things have been proven, I guess.” The human seems to agree with his statement, judging by the snort he gives.

“Yeah, I mean werewolves are a thing after all.” Stiles goes a bit quiet after that, seemingly contemplating his position.

After a while, Stiles mumbles out a statement almost too quiet for him to hear. Even with his advanced senses. “Will Scott and I ever get to see our families again?” Derek lets out a huge sigh. He isn’t sure how to answer that one.

* * *

Stiles watched as the alpha’s face momentarily shut down at his question. He shouldn’t be that surprised that the wolf heard him, super senses and whatnot. It was still just a little strange, being around people with such abilities. He took a moment to fully appreciate the alpha’s looks. He was a few inches or so taller than Stiles, but easily more broad. His skin was a darker complexion, that helped to highlight his light hazel eyes. With dark hair, and stubble to match, this guy was easily the type Stiles would go for. Well that couldn’t possibly end well. As the young hunter made to end the awkward silence before it stretched too long he heard laughter coming from the hallway moments before Scott came through the door with someone else in tow. 

“Stiles! Are they finally done with you?” He looked to Derek, who nodded affirmatively.

“I was just on my way out.” As Derek was heading out, he noticed that the boy with Scott gave the alpha a shit eating grin. The alpha scowled in response and shook his head before walking out.

“Is he always that grumpy?” Scott asked while watching the alpha’s retreating back. Judging by the way Derek tensed slightly before continuing on his way, he heard that. Stiles smacked Scott’s arm giving him a look before shaking his head.

“It depends… Is it a day that ends in y? Then he’s grumpy.” The other occupant of the room paused and turned to face Stiles. “I’m Isaac by the way, one of the betas in your new pack.” Ah, they were trying to assimilate he and Scott, so of course one of them would try to befriend them. All the same, it couldn’t hurt to know more people. Stiles shook the proffered hand.

“Nice to meet you Isaac, I’m Stiles… Although I assume you already knew that.” He at least had the decency to look chagrined before nodding. Scott seemed to be vibrating out of skin, so rolling his eyes Stiles asked, “what?”

“Isaac said that they found an Xbox on one of their raids along with a whole bunch of games! Some that we had and others that I’ve never even heard of!” He scooted closer to the bed and elbowed Stiles lightly. “Do you feel well enough to play some games?”

Stiles was eyeing him warily, as much as he wanted to leave the sterile room; just thinking about moving was exhausting. Before he could answer properly Isaac slid on his other side and nudged him, “We could probably convince Derek to come.” What the hell? Stiles looked to see the bastard, Isaac, smirking at him. He scowled at the beta, although it did nothing to hide the blush creeping up his neck. God bless Scott’s obliviousness to the situation.

“Why would that matter to Stiles? I guess it would be nice to kind of get to know the guy since he’s what? Our superior officer? But whatever, Stiles… are you interested?” Oh shit, Scott was breaking out the puppy eyes. The teen rolled his eyes at Scott’s antics.

“I would love to come play games, but honestly just the thought of moving is making me tired. I think I’m gonna go back to sleep… but you feel free to go hang. I’ll catch up to you guys when I’m not injured.” Scott eyed him seriously before relenting and leaving with Isaac, who looked him up and down one last time before leaving. Jerk.

* * *

The alpha returned to his room for the night, thinking of how he was going to integrate Scott and Stiles with the rest of the pack. Well, mostly Scott if he was being honest with himself. While Stiles seemed like the type to oppose orders he didn’t agree with, he at least seemed able to follow orders. Scott, on the other hand, had an independent streak a mile wide and bull headedness that reminded him a lot of himself. Sighing he turned on the light and froze, someone else was in his room. Growling the alpha let his eyes flash red. “Peter, what the hell are you doing in here?”

The bastard smirked at him, swiveling around in the desk chair to face him. “Why, nephew? Is that anyway to greet your dear uncle?” His mock hurt was really touching. The alpha didn’t deign to respond to that with anything other than a more forceful growl. “Now, now Derek, no need to get ornery. I was merely checking up on your wellbeing after such a taxing mission.”

Derek scowled at his uncle, “I’m fine. Nothing happened that should make you feel otherwise.” He was really getting tired of Peter blindsiding him with ‘family bonding’. He could very much go without it for the next few months.

Peter just smiled at him insincerely. “Now, nephew don’t fib. I was referring more to the fact that you ran into a certain someone.” Derek tensed and began growling lowly as Peter’s grin turned sharp. “I’m referring of course to Kate Argent.” Peter stood and stalked closer to Derek. “Tell me, did you enjoy cowering from her? It must have been a familiar feeling.”

Derek blanked out, when he came to he was holding Peter up against the wall by his throat with a clawed hand. He could feel his eyes glow red, as Peter’s flashed in response, though the other alpha made no move other than grin cruely. “Struck a nerve there, did I?”

He crowded right into his uncle’s space. “We were instructed not to engage with the hunters, so we didn’t.” He thought that would be the end of it. He honestly should have known better.

Peter just laughed, “Oh, because that worked so well the first time? Derek Hale, perfect first alpha. Always following orders and never endangering his pack. That’s you.” Despite Derek’s warning growl, Peter removed the other alpha’s clawed hand from his throat. Derek backed away from Peter as he straightened his jacket. “If you were following our alpha’s orders so well then tell me, why is there a hunter in the infirmary?”

Growling, Derek turned away from his uncle. “You know damn well why I did. Laura has been looking for inside information on the hunters. A sympathizer is the perfect opportunity to get that information and-”

“And as a result we should just give him all of our secrets by inviting him to join a pack, right? Because inviting a possible mole to join us worked out so well the last time you did it, so of course we should try this again.” Derek just stared at Peter, breathing heavily and scowling.

“Is there a problem?” Laura said while poking her head in. Judging by the look on her face, she knew damn well that there was a problem. Being Laura meant that she would give them a chance to explain themselves instead of going alpha off the bat.

Smirking, Peter walked out of the room past Laura, “No, dear niece. No problem at all.” With that Peter left.

Placing a hand on his arm Laura looked quizzically at her younger brother. “Are you alright, Derek?”

Derek shook his head at Laura and turned around to make his way further into the room, effectively dismissing the high alpha. Normally he wouldn’t act so crass to her, but he wasn’t in a great mood after dealing with Peter. He usually never was, when his uncle was involved. Laura, being the understanding older sister she was, didn’t hold it against Derek and left; leaving him to brood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I live in the south... like Louisiana south. My work is closed for a snow day... if that struck you as odd... me too. Hence the inebriation on a Monday night. Also, if they make Stiles the bad guy and kill him, I will rain fiery death upon the souls of everyone who had a part in the creation of that plot point... Just sayin.


End file.
